WAGNER REVIEWS READING DEFEAT

Huddersfield Town Head Coach David Wagner was disappointed to see his side go out of the Emirates FA Cup due to tonight’s 5-2 replay defeat at Reading.

“It was a real cup game, with everything included,” he told htafc.com after the final whistle.

“This was one of the big targets for us; to qualify for the next round. This was a different competition without the pressure of the league table and we showed that for the first 30 minutes, but now we are out and we know why.”

Town impressed in the opening stages and went two goals ahead after dominating the Royals.

“Our side played great football for 25 minutes and created great chances, scoring two excellent goals. When it was 11 against 11, I think this is one of the best periods we have ever played; excellent. We dominated the game and looked to have taken another step in the right direction.”

However, a 26th minute red card for Jonathan Hogg for denying Matej Vydra a goal-scoring opportunity led to Reading’s strong fightback.

Wagner continued: “Then the key moment came, when we got the red card – and the free kick that gave a goal against us. That changed the game completely.

“I don’t like to speak about the decision of the referee; we have to accept it.

“The mistake came before. When we hit the ball, we have to step up so the player who chases the ball is offside. I think in this moment, Joel Lynch was a little bit too deep and this allowed the player to stay onside. After that, it was a good move from Vydra – but it was a mistake from our side.

“Until then, Joel had played a great game and even started the second goal with the long ball to Nahki.

“I know Lucas Piazon, because he played in Germany for Frankfurt. He is one of the best free kick takers and today he took a very good one; there was no chance for Joe Murphy or our wall.”

After that, the Terriers struggled to maintain possession and Reading took full advantage.

“The result is hard to accept, but because of the last 60 minutes I think it was correct.

“We will speak about what we have to do the next time we have a man less and we will be another 10 or 15 steps forward. In this moment we were not able to keep the ball or create counter-attack chances.

“At the moment, we are still working on what we do when it’s 11 against 11. Right now, I am able to put this behind me.”

One positive was a comeback for Dean Whitehead after injury, although Wagner protected him by taking him off late on.

“He is OK. We had spoken with the medical staff about him playing 30 minutes and I wanted to make sure he is fit for the future, including Saturday. This was 40 very important minutes for ‘Deano’.

“I didn’t have the feeling we could create chances, so I tried to bring tall players on in Ishmael and Cranie to try and score from set piece situations. That didn’t work.”

Now Wagner’s players must quickly recover ahead of Saturday’s Sky Bet Championship game at Brighton.

“We will keep our heads up, move forwards and try to recover for Saturday. Brighton was able to lay on the sofa today and we played one hour with ten men. We have to make sure we are as fresh as we can be and try to play like we did in the first 30 minutes.”